


all things love thee, so do i

by grimmrific



Category: The Sisters Grimm - Michael Buckley
Genre: 1830s, Alternate Universe - Historical, M/M, havent done a period piece before and wanted to try it out lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-11-02
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:20:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27002647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grimmrific/pseuds/grimmrific
Summary: Upon arriving at Ferryport Landing, Charming found everything to be just as he expected. That is, everything except for Jake Grimm.
Relationships: Jacob Grimm/Prince Charming (The Sisters Grimm)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 6





	1. Chapter 1

William Charming gazed down at the dark waters crashing against the side of the ship. The way the waves shimmered and moved about was transfixing to him, despite the pandemonium surrounding him on board.

It was almost time to disembark, and it seemed all the other Everafters had waited until the last minute to get ready. Princesses, witches, and talking animals alike were rushing around and shoving past each other in order to gather their things last-minute. Charming let his right hand drop down and lightly graze the suitcases he had set down on the floorboards at his side. He got the feeling that this town would need him. He stayed on this thought for what felt like minutes before he was interrupted.

"Billy," Snow said, appearing behind him. He snapped out of his trance and turned. "Have you seen my green dress anywhere? The one with the lace corset?"

"The one you're wearing right now?"

"No, the other one. The one I wore a fortnight ago, don't you remember? You complimented it."

They had been dating a fortnight ago. They weren't anymore. The casual way she brought it up was somewhat insulting to him. And what reason could he possibly have to memorize the appearance of not one, but _two_ green dresses?

"I thought that was this one," he said with a shrug, turning back around to face the fast-approaching shore. "I hadn't any idea that there were two."

"You're impossible," she huffed, hurrying back into the chaos to gather the last of her possessions.

Ferryport Landing was coming into view. Like Jacob and Wilhelm had told them all, it was a quiet town with a humble appearance. Quaint shops with wood-paneled exteriors and shingled roofs lined the main streets, and the houses scattered about didn't look much different. Some of the buildings had a warm glow emanating from their foggy windows, and the smog from chimneys hung nearly high enough to mask the stars. 

Creases of worry began to appear on Charming's chiseled face. He was a prince. Quaint wouldn't do. But he would have to live with it.

His grasp on the ship's railing tightened.

"Everybody form a line!" Jacob hollered in his thick German accent. Wilhelm had given him the duty of organizing everyone, as he was the only one of the two who could speak English.

Charming picked up his bags with a heavy sigh and got in line, not taking his eyes off of the city that he would now be calling home. He had chosen to come here. There was no turning back now.

Just then, something else glided into his awareness. He could see a young man in the distance pedaling toward the docks with determination, a satchel slung over his back, and a cap just barely covering his messy blond hair. Everything about his appearance was scruffy and unkept, and yet he had a grin on his face and approached the docks with eagerness.

Riff-raff. Charming wrinkled his nose. If this boy thought he would be getting any autographs from him, he was sorely mistaken.

The line ahead of him grew shorter and shorter as he watched the young man come to a stop near the front of the ship and wait patiently. For some reason, he dreaded having to cross his path. 

He leaned forward slightly. "Do you have any idea who that young man is?" he asked Glinda, who was in line in front of him.

"Haven't the faintest," she replied. "Why?"

Charming shook his head. "I just wasn't expecting to meet someone like that this early on."

"Well, you'll have to get used to commoners, your majesty," Glinda sighed, fluffing up her hair and smoothing out her dress. "I hear this town is positively infested with them."

"Wonderful."

When he finally got off the ship, he found Jacob waiting for him alongside the scruffy blond. 

"Your majesty, could I speak with you for a moment?" Jacob asked, beckoning him over.

"Yes, what is it?" Charming replied, avoiding the boy's gaze as if it were diseased. 

"We would be honored if you would visit for dinner tonight," Jacob said humbly. "We believe it's important to discuss the future of this town's government, as you have showed interest in spearheading it."

"I suppose that would be fine," Charming replied slowly. "But who's this 'we' you keep mentioning?"

"Oh, I forgot," Jacob laughed, putting his arm around the boy. "This is my son, Jacob the Second."

"Call me Jake," the young man said, extending a hand and flashing a smile. Charming held back, shocked. Jacob hadn't mentioned any son, much less a son like this. He looked more like a dirty orphan than the son of a rich man like Jacob. And now, being so close, Charming could see that his nose was dirty, and that his eyes had a mischievous gleam to them. He would never associate with the likes of this... unless he had to. 

He reluctantly shook the young man's hand. "A pleasure."

Jacob looked down disapprovingly at his son's bicycle. "I gave you more than enough fare for the carriage."

"Oh, I know," his son replied casually, stretching. "I just like the exercise. But I've scheduled a carriage to meet you and the prince here at the docks. It should be arriving any minute. Here--," he pulled a coin out of his pocket and flipped it to his father, who caught it, "-- I ended up with a nickel besides."

There was something about the way Jake said _the prince_. It just didn't hit the ear right. It sounded like he was trying too hard to be respectful, but at the same time, it sounded condescending. If only Jacob had mentioned a son...

"You can both call me just Charming. Or William," he said, instantly regretting bestowing that privilege on the likes of Jake Grimm.

"It's an honor," Jacob said earnestly. 

"Ah, there it is," remarked Jake as the horse-drawn carriage rumbled down the cobblestone streets and slowed to a stop in front of them. He ran up and opened the door, standing to the side. "You can go first, pri-- I mean Charming."

"I think your father should go first," Charming replied coldly.

"Father always sits in front with the coachman," Jake said with a wave of his hand. Charming reluctantly climbed inside, and Jake followed. The carriage shortly began to move again once they were both sat there, alone. 

"I've never met a Brit before, much less a British Everafter," the blond said casually, resting his chin on his fist as he stared out the window. "Which really is quite odd, because I've accompanied my father on many of his travels. I've even gotten to wrangle a few magical creatures."

"How old are you?" Charming asked.

"Hm? Oh... precisely twenty-three," Jake replied. "My birthday was a week and a half ago."

Twenty-three years old and still lives with his rich father; Charming wasn't surprised. He thought with smug pride about how he, at age twenty-three, had already been living in his own castle for years, and how by age twenty-seven he was handling important government affairs and looking for a potential princess. He was still looking, but of course, he was still twenty-seven. He had been for quite a while. "Well, happy birthday," he said finally.

Jake nodded, and the two were silent for a while until he spoke again: "I collect magical items."

"Oh?"

"Or, rather, my father collects them on his journeys. He only brings me along when he really needs the extra hand," he sighed. "Once we get to the house, I could show some to you, if you'd like."

Suddenly, it all clicked, and Charming had even more disdain for him than before. Jacob's son was this way _because_ he was rich. His father did all the work, and he got to dilly-dally and ride his bike all day, with all of the magical items he could wish for at his disposal. And when his father did put him to work, it was something like magical creature hunting-- not requiring any skill besides courage.

"I'd like that very much," Charming said absently. "Sounds fascinating."

\---

Jacob led him and Jake into the house, which smelled faintly of rosemary and charcoal. 

"There's a roast cooking," Jake said, taking off his cap and putting it on the rack. "You like cornish hen, don't you?"

"Oh yes, I do," Charming replied. "You have a lovely home."

Jake nodded. "If you follow me upstairs, I'll show you my bedroom where I keep my magical paraphernalia."

As Charming followed him up the narrow staircase, he noticed an underlying caution to Jacob's every move. He looked at the ground as he walked, rather than straight ahead, obviously trying to minimize the chance of a slip, and he talked quickly, as if he wanted to get out every word before he ran out of time. Maybe he didn't have it as easy as he had thought he did before.

Jake pushed open the door to his bedroom, and Charming was astonished at how clean it was. His bed was made with care, each magical trinket had been neatly organized into labeled drawers, and a folded newspaper rested on the nightstand.

"I cleaned it before you arrived," said Jake, noticing the surprised look on Charming's face. "I thought that, being a prince and all, your standards would be demanding."

"I didn't take you for a tidy person."

"I'm usually not," Jake admitted, opening a drawer and pulling out a box labeled **Wands**.

He quickly got to work, walking the prince through each object's function and purpose, sometimes even demonstrating by testing them out on himself. Charming said very little throughout all this, as he was known to do, but watched Jake with amusement and fascination.

"Ah, this one is special," Jake said, pulling out a light blue, almost translucent wand. "I forget the name of this one. It lets you transport yourself anywhere in the world. Name a place."

Charming thought. "France."

Jake waved the wand and muttered something under his breath, promptly disappearing in a flash of white light. Charming waited, and after a few minutes, Jake reappeared with a handful of strawberries.

"Berries from France," he said with a grin, handing them to Charming. "I would have gotten you something more incriminating of its location, but there didn't appear to be any French flags lying around."

Charming tentatively tasted one. It tasted like a normal strawberry, so he removed the stems and popped them all into his mouth. "So, if you can travel anywhere at will," he said as he chewed. "Why do you still live with your father?"

Jake chuckled. "He's my father. And he's getting to his old age now."

Charming ate silently. He could hardly remember his own father, or if he had even had one. What a cruel irony that such a high-end elite like him would be an orphan. He opened his mouth to tell this to Jake, and then promptly snapped it shut. What on earth was he doing? He wasn't going to sit there and recount his woes and regrets to this dirty proletariat stranger!

He deliberately twisted his mouth into a scowl. "You have dirt on your face."

Jake grabbed a hand mirror and looked at his reflection. "Oh," he chuckled, wiping his nose with his sleeve. "I was working in the garden today. That's where all of our fruits and vegetables come from. Saves loads of money."

"Indeed," said Charming flatly, grabbing the newspaper off of the nightstand and sitting down on the bed to read it, signaling he didn't want to talk anymore. 

"I was reading that just this very morning," Jake began, causing Charming to roll his eyes. This Jake Grimm sure was a talkative one. He stared at the headline emblazoned on the front page. Something about the president-- he never could understand Americans and their sensationalist political nonsense.

"That president of ours," Jake said, shaking his head with a spiteful look. "Another slave-owning scoundrel with a surplus of buffoonery and a deficiency of human decency."

"Well, you Americans have made your bed with this democracy business, and now you must lie in it," sighed Charming, setting the paper aside. If there was a way to get Jake to shut up, clearly that paper had nothing to do with it. 

"Dinner is ready!" called Jacob from downstairs. _Jake and Jacob._ Charming wondered if it was ever as confusing for them as it was for him.

As he and Jake sat down at the dinner table, Jacob immediately began prattling on about the responsibilities they both had to the people of this town, humans and Everafters alike, and about mayoral elections, taxpayer funds and so on. All, the while Jake sat there eating silently. Where was that politically charged activist from just a few moments ago? Apparently, he disappeared in the presence of his father.

Charming picked at his Cornish hen. He hadn't much of an appetite anymore, and he couldn't quite place why. "Yes, I think a mayoral position would benefit me greatly, and would also do the same for the people of this town."

"Very well," said Jacob with finality. "I'll start posting job listings for your staff."

"And what of the monsters?" Jake said suddenly. Charming and Jacob both looked at him.

"I beg your pardon?" his father said.

"The Jabberwocky and such. Surely you don't expect me to wrangle them, too?"

The thought made Charming laugh in spite of himself. Imagining this pipsqueak trying to take on something as powerful as a Jabberwocky... the image was downright absurd.

"Many of these Everafters are excellent fighters," Jacob replied dismissively. "I'll leave the task to them. A magic boundary will also be put up around their enclosure, will that satisfy you?"

"Very much."

Charming hadn't even thought about the more dangerous creatures before Jake brought them up. It was funny, if not for Jake's reckless and childish nature, he would have probably made an excellent member of Charming's staff.

"Thank you very much for the meal," he said, getting up, "But I must be off now. Moving in is a lengthy process."

"God be with you, farewell," replied Jacob. 

"Do you have anyone helping you move in?" Jake asked, his brow furrowed. 

"Er... no," Charming replied, offput by the peculiar question. "But I'll manage. Have a good day."

"Well, goodbye William."

Charming hesitated. "Actually, I'd prefer it if you called me Prince Charming."

And with that, he was out the door and into the rain, lugging his suitcases through the damp streets. Part of him longed to stay, but on the other hand, he was eager to leave. He hailed a carriage and got in, trying not to look back at that grand, two-story colonial where that strange boy lived.


	2. Chapter 2

Charming loved and hated the silence. 

On one hand, his new home was certainly more welcoming than his old one, as it had less negative memories tied to it that weighed it down. And as an introvert, he welcomed the peace and quiet that allowed him to think. But on the other hand, the silence reminded him that unlike his castle back in England, where servants waited on him hand and foot, there would be no one to help him here. He was absolutely alone.

Just then, there was a knock at the door, and he sighed heavily. On the _other_ , other hand, maybe he wasn't as alone as he would like to be. It was all so confusing.

He opened the door to find Snow waiting for him expectantly beside a horse-drawn carriage. She was twirling her parasol impatiently with a sour expression. 

"Oh. Snow. Hello."

"Hello?" she repeated in disbelief. "You promised that you would accompany me to the construction of the elementary school. And when you didn't meet me where you said you would, I just _knew_ you would be--"

"Right, right. Well, I'm ready. Let's go."

He climbed into the carriage unceremoniously, and Snow begrudgingly followed.

"And, to correct what you just said, we aren't going to the construction. We're going to see them lay out the blueprints and such," he commented as the carriage started off. "Construction doesn't start for ages."

"Billy, I feel inclined to say something that I've been bottling up for months," Snow huffed, closing her parasol and laying it down across her lap. 

"Do speak your mind," Charming said sarcastically. "You haven't been doing that enough."

"I have been carrying this relationship on my back," she said angrily. "If you wanted to stop speaking to me after we broke things off, you should have just said so. But instead, you lied to me and told me you wanted to be my friend. Now I'm the only one trying, and you're acting like I'm a fool for doing so!"

Charming exhaled sharply. "I may have overestimated how enjoyable a friendship with my former lover would be. To tell you the truth, it's just awkward."

Snow gasped, taken aback by his blunt response. "I can't believe you! Y-you're a child! Not only do you say things too late, you say them too harshly as well!"

"People need to hear the harsh truth sometimes."

"We were in love, Billy. Love. How can we go from that to not speaking to each other at all?"

"How do you know it was love? Do either of us _really_ know what that feels like?"

She stopped talking, and Charming immediately regretted what he had said. He turned around so he wouldn't have to face her. After a few moments, he heard her draw in a shaky breath, and turned back around to find that tears were welling up in her eyes.

"Oh no, please don't do that," said Charming, scooting away. "I don't mean to be insensitive, but if a friendship isn't working, it just isn't."

"Please... don't antagonize me. I don't _want_ to be your enemy, Billy. Former lovers don't always have to be so."

"You're not," Charming sighed. "You're not. I never considered you an enemy." Lately, he hadn't been considering her at all.

"You can invalidate our current relationship all you want, but to invalidate our romance! To suggest that it meant nothing!"

"Oh, please."

"This was supposed to be such a big event for me," Snow lamented. "As soon as this school opens, I'll be one of the only teachers there. You knew how excited I was to see construction start!" She punctuated this last remark with a sob into her handkerchief. This was turning into quite a mess.

"This can still be a happy occasion," Charming said. "You just need to stop crying."

Passerby on the street were starting to stare at them now. Oh, how he wished this were one of those closed, indoor carriages. 

Snow blew her nose loudly. "Just know that I'm not weeping for our lost relationship," she said to him. "I'm weeping for my lost reputation. What a fool everyone will think I am!"

"Nobody will know about this disaster if you just don't--," Charming looked around, "-- make a _scene_."

"Do you promise to keep this a secret? To not brag to people that I 'pursued' you for weeks after we broke up? To not make me out to be a desperate, emotional--"

"I _won't_. Goodness, when have I ever done any of that?"

Snow didn't answer.

"I won't, I swear to God. Now, _please_."

Snow slowly began to collect herself, deliberately facing away from him and looking coldly out at the street. "You're so indecisive when it comes to women. It's like you keep them around just so you can say you have them."

"Everyone does that," Charming said dismissively.

They reached their destination: the plot of land that would eventually become Ferryport Landing Elementary School. Wilhelm and Jacob were there, along with the Three Little Pigs and -- _ugh_ \-- Jake.

What kind of input could that rich, spoiled brat possibly provide for the construction of this school? Even as the older men were talking, he was sitting under a tree, fiddling with what appeared to be a wooden flute. Does he ever get tired of being so... quaint?

Jake saw him and waved. He begrudgingly waved back. Jake sat back and began to play, closing his eyes serenely as he did so.

"Who is that?" asked Snow.

"Jacob's son. Jacob the Second. Jake." Charming said that last word through gritted teeth.

"What do you have against him?"

"Nothing," Charming replied, shaking his head. "It's just that Jacob keeps bringing him to these serious events when he clearly doesn't understand anything being discussed. He's so carefree and stupid. Well, not stupid. But... just--"

"Do my eyes look red?" Snow interrupted, having lost interest in Charming's speech a long time ago. "Does it look like I've been crying?"

Snow hated people knowing of her emotional nature. Charming glanced over at her. She looked as strikingly beautiful as ever. "You're an Everafter," he said simply. "You'll always look fine."

Without thinking, he walked over to where Jake was. As he got closer, he recognized the song Jake was playing: "Yankee Doodle".

"So, your father brought you here to watch him talk business," Charming said stiffly, stopping a few inches from where Jake sat playing. "Little did he know that by inviting you, he was hiring... free entertainment." He gestured to the flute's wooden case.

Jake looked up at him and stopped playing. He cracked a wry smile. "You resent me, don't you?"

Charming stepped back in astonishment as Jake went back to playing Yankee Doodle. He was at a complete loss for words.

After a few moments, Jake stopped playing again and simply said: "I'm not stupid."

"You're not?" Charming blurted out. Jake chuckled and put the flute back in its case, clasping it shut.

"That's a good one, Prince Charming." He stood up and brushed the dirt off of his clothes.

"Why do you think I resent you?"

"It's practically written on your face every time you see me," Jake said with amusement. "You probably think I'm beneath you, and that I'm childish and spoiled. Is that right, sir?"

Charming said nothing.

"I don't find it at all personal. You'll turn around on me. They all do," Jake said cheerily. "Now, you should probably do what you came here to do."

Charming blinked stupidly for a moment, and then remembered about the school. "Right," he said quietly, starting towards the construction site.

"Ah, Prince Charming, or should I say, Mayor Charming," Jacob Sr. greeted him as he approached. "Will you please tell this gentleman that we cannot build a school out of straw?"

"It's never worked for you, Boarman," Charming said bluntly.

Boarman looked down with embarrassment, his already pink cheeks turning pinker.

"I see that you work in your human forms now," he remarked. "It seems like all animal Everafters do nowadays. When did we all become so ashamed of who we are?"

"Not ashamed," Hamstead spoke up. "Careful. We've been that way ever since we moved to a town with humans in it."

"My ears are ringing," Jake said jokingly, appearing behind Charming.

"Ah, this is my son, Jacob the Second," Jacob Sr. said to the three pigs and Snow White. "I hope you don't mind that I've entrusted the design of the school to a human."

"Call me Jake," said Jake, shaking hands with each of the three pigs. He planted a kiss on Snow White's extended hand, causing her to blush. Charming rolled his eyes.

"What fine manners your son has," she remarked.

Jacob Sr. beamed with pride. "He is talented and capable, too. He will do fine work for this school."

"Does this mean Jake made these blueprints?" Charming asked wearily. They looked so intricate and complex.

"No, the architecture of the building was thought of by the pigs. Jake will be handling the design of the inside and outside-- how it all looks."

"Interior design is one of my passions," Jake said with a grin. How many passions can one person have...? That can't be good for a person; with so many interests, it's impossible to excel at any of them. Like they say: jack of all trades, master of none.

"How many teachers will there be?" asked Snow.

"Well, for now, only one," replied Jacob Sr., "And that's you."

She gave Charming a smug side-eye. 

"One teacher for the human children _and_ Everafter children?" Charming said with a scowl. "That won't do."

"Why do you think that?" inquired Jacob Sr. They all looked at Charming expectantly, and it became clear that he had just said something bigoted. Time to backpedal.

"Children are unpredictable," he said slowly and carefully. "They could blow our covers."

"Ah, that brings us to my next announcement," said Jacob Sr. He pulled a small cloth pouch out of his pocket. "The fairies have introduced me to something very special."

"Cocaine?" Charming said sarcastically. Jake chuckled quietly.

"It is a dust," Jacob Sr. explained, "But this dust is different. It is magic, and it helps you forget! They call it 'forgetful dust'."

"Creative," said Snow.

"Would anyone like to try it out?" the old man offered, holding it up in the air. "Maybe you want to forget something that happened today."

Charming thought back to his fight with Snow, and almost raised his hand before noticing the death glare she was giving him. He lowered his hand guiltily. That's right; she wanted him to _learn_ from his mistakes. 

"You can try it out on me, father," said Jake with a smile, stepping forward readily. "Make me forget... I don't know... how about this morning's paper?"

Jacob Sr. nodded and pulled out a handful of dust. Jake closed his eyes, and his father threw the dust in his face. 

There was a noticeable change in Jake's expression. It was now blank, expressionless, almost dead. "You haven't read the paper today," his father told him. "You got up, got ready, and came straight here, where you are now going over the plans for the new elementary school."

"Going over the plans for the new elementary school," Jake repeated robotically. "I haven't read the paper yet."

Charming looked from one Grimm to the other, wide-eyed. He looked over at Snow, and she seemed to be thinking the same thing: this family is _insane_.

After a few moments, Jake's expression cleared and he looked around. "Hello, all," he said as if nothing had happened. "Why exactly are you all staring at me?"

"We just finished the forgetful dust demonstration," his father explained, pocketing the cloth pouch.

"Really?" asked Jake curiously. "What did I forget?"

"... It's not important."

Jake shrugged and rejoined the group. Charming eyed him with concern. 

They spent the next half hour going over paperwork and the coming week's schedule. Jake seemed to be completely fine with being his father's test monkey, as he was in a perfectly chipper mood the whole time. Everyone else, on the other hand, was silently reminding themselves not to mess with such a reckless and foolhardy pair.

Charming supposed that this side of Jacob Sr. made sense. How else could Jake have turned out the way he did? So careless, so ready to throw himself on the front lines... This thought was still churning in his mind when Jake stopped him on his way out.

"Your Majesty?"

Charming turned around slowly. He still wasn't sure what he wanted people to call him.

"Would you be interested in having lunch at the pub down the street? My father promised to be there, but it looks as though he'll be in meetings all day."

"So you regard me as second to your father in terms of company."

"I never said that," Jake replied with a playful grin.

Charming turned to ask Snow if it was alright, and saw that she was already getting into a carriage by herself. He watched as it took off down the road and disappeared out of sight.

He stood there for a few moments, and then turned back around to face Jake. "I suppose I can spare an afternoon."


End file.
